Releasable buckles



Dec. 2, 1958 F. B. HARLEY 2,862,271

RELEASABLE BUCKLES Original Filed July l'7, 1950 INVENTOR FRANK B. HAQLEY ATTOQNEYJ United States Patent O RELEASABLE BUCKLES Frank Bernard Harley, Englefield Green, Egham, England Original application July 17, 1950, Serial No. 174,149, now Patent No. 2,269,220, dated November 6, 1956. Divided and this application April 30, 1956, Serial No. 581,649

Claims priority, application Great Britain February 3, 1950 Claims. (Cl. 24-197) This invention relates to releasable buckles for connecting a strap to another part and one object is to provide a simple buckle which can be readily manufactured by bending from a single stamping, but which yet enables a rm grip on a strap to be achieved.

According to the present invention, a releasable buckle for connecting a strap to another part, comprises la frame formed by bending a single lat stamping consisting of two side members joined by three parallel transverse bars, namely a main anchorage adjacent one end for connection to the part to be connected to the strap, Ian auxiliary anchorage adjacent the other end for connection to the strap, and a transverse gripping bar, which gripping bar is on the other side of the main anchorage from the auxiliary anchorage in the flat stamping, but after the stamping has been bent is positioned over the space between the main and auxiliary anchorages on one side of the plane of tension between the main and auxiliary anchorages.

Preferably the buckle includes means preventing the gripping bar from moving nearer to the auxiliary anchorage than the thickness of the strap. For example, end portions of the side members of the frame may extend beyond the gripping bar and after the stamping has been bent may 'abut the portions of the side members between the main and auxiliary anchorages. This prevents the buckle being deformed under tension so as to grip the strap positively between the gripping edge and the auxiliary anchorage and renders the likelihood of damage to the strap, such as would be caused by prongs or teeth, to be more remote.

In order to ensure a strong grip after the stamping has been bent the position of the gripping bar may be such that when the strap is passed under the auxiliary anchorage around the gripping bar and back round the Iauxiliary anchorage between it and the standing end of the strap and tension is applied, the strap is in contact with the auxiliary anchorage through an `angle of at least about 90.

In one form of the invention after the stamping has been bent each side member is in side View in the general form of a triangle with one side prolonged, which side extends between the main and auxiliary anchorages, while the gripping bar is positioned in the region of the opposite corner. Thus the side connecting the said opposite corner to the intermediate part of the prolonged side may comprise an end portion of the side member which extends beyond the gripping bar and abuts the intermediate part of the side members between the main and auxiliary anchorages to prevent the gripping bar at the said opposite corner from moving nearer to the -auxiliary anchorage.

The invention may be carried into practice in various ways and one specific embodiment will be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which,

Figure 1 is a plan View of a stamping which is to be bent to form the buckle,

ice

Figure 2 is a view corresponding to that of Figure 1 but after the stamping has been bent,

Figure 3 is a side view of the buckle shown in Figure 2, with the strap in position, and

Figure 4 is a sectional side view corresponding'to Figure 3 but Without the strap in position, showing an optional additional plate.

As can be seen in Figure l the buckle is formed from a single stamping consisting of two side members 11 between which extend three parallel transverse members, namely a central member 12 which forms a main anchorage for connection to the part to be connected to the strap, an auxiliary anchorage 13 for connection to the strap, and a transverse gripping bar 14. In the fiat stamping, the main anchorage 12 lies between the auxiliary anchorage 13 and the gripping bar 14, while the side members 11 extend a little beyond the gripping bar 14 to form feet 15.

To form the buckle the stamping is bent upwards as shown in Figure l about the line 16 and the line 17, while if desired the auxiliary anchorage may be bent a little downwards about line 18 as shown in Figure 4.

The stamping is bent to the form shown in Figures 2 and 3 in which each side member 11 is generally in the form of a triangle with one side prolonged as shown at 19 in Figure 3, which side extends between the main and auxiliary anchorages 12 and 13, while the transverse gripping bar 14 is positioned above the space between the main and auxiliary anchorages. Each foot 15 constitutes a part of one side of the triangle and abuts the side member 11 between the main and auxiliary anchorages and prevents the gripping bar 14 from moving nearer to the auxiliary anchorage 13.

The auxiliary anchorage and gripping bar are spaced apart by a distance a little greater than the thickness of the strap 21.

The part to be connected to the strap-as shown, the other end of the strap 21-is secured to the main anchorage 12 and the free end of the strap after passing round the body to be held, for example a pile of books, is passed under the auxiliary anchorage 13, through the space between the main anchorage 12 and the gripping bar 14, around the gripping bar and back between the gripping bar and the auxiliary anchorage and thence between the underside of the auxiliary lanchorage 13 and the upper side of the adjacent or standing end portion of the strap as shown in Figure 3.

When tension is applied betwen the two ends of the strap as shown at 24, the gripping bar is positioned on one side of the plane of tension so that the tension tends to increase the grip of the strap as the standing end 25 presses the free end 26 against the edge of the auxiliary anchorage 13. It will be seen from Figure 3 that the position of the gripping bar is such that the free end of the strap 26 embraces the edge of the auxiliary anchorage 13 through an angle a little in excess of 90 and this ensures that a tight grip is obtained, allowing no slip. The buckle can be released by lifting the free end of the auxiliary anchorage 13 which is shown as formed with a nger tab 27 for this purpose. It may be convenient, as shown in Figure 4, for this linger tab to be bent a little downwards.

It will be appreciated that the grip is obtained without having recourse to prongs, teeth, or other parts which cut into the strap and which tend to weaken the strap, making it more likely to fail. If desired, a plate 31, shown in Figure 4, may be secured at the under side of the main stamping by means of flanges 32 projecting up through the space between the main and auxiliary anchorages and bent back over the top faces of the respective anchorages to provide a larger, and smooth, surface in contact with the strap to decrease the danger of dam- The frictional grip to the strap can be .increased YbyV providing surface holes 34 in the bent over edges oi the plate 31 to increase the frictional.grip without 'providing' sharp edges.

This application is a division Yof applicants 'application Serial No. 174,149, filed July 17, 1950, now PatentNol What I claim as my invention and desire to secureb Letters Patent is:

1. A releasable buckle for connecting a strap to another part, comprising .a ,frame of sheet material consisting of two side members interconnected by three parallel transverse bars, namely a main anchorage for connection to the part to be connected to the strap, and an auxiliary anchorage and a gripping bar to hold the strap, the gripping bar being positioned over the space between the main and auxiliary anchorages on one side of the plane of tension between them, so that said strap can be held by passing its free Vend under the auxiliary anchorage around the gripping bar and back under the auxiliary anchorage between it and the standing end of the strap, in which each side member extends substantially straight from the auxiliary anchorage to the main anchorage and then turns back to the gripping bar, and has a portion projecting beyond the gripping bar which extends approximately perpendicularly to the plane of the anchorages and abuts against the portion of the said side member between the main and auxiliary anchorages, thereby spacing the gripping bar from the plane of the anchorages and preventing it from being pulled into said plane.

2. A buckle as claimed in claim 1 in which the gripping bar is curved in sections perpendicular to its length.

3. A buckle as claimed in claim 1 in which the gripping bar is curved through an are of not less than 90 and positioned so that when the free end of the strap is passed under the auxiliary anchorage around the gripping bar and back under the auxiliary anchorage between it and the standing end of the strap, and tension is applied, the lStrap is in contact with the auxiliary anchorage through an angle of at least about 4. A buckle as claimed in claim 1 in which each side member is in side view in the general form of a triangle with one side prolonged, which side extends between the main and auxiliary anchorages, while the gripping bar is positioned in the region of the opposite corner.

5. A buckle as claimed in claim 4 in which the side connecting the said opposite corner to the intermediate part of the prolonged side, comprises an end portion of the side member which extends beyond the gripping bar and abuts the intermediate part of the side members between the Ymain and auxiliary anchorages to prevent the gripping bar at the said opposite corner from moving nearer to the auxiliary anchorage.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATESl PATENTS 93,592 Brooks Aug. 10, 1869 Y 413,382 Bassett Oct. 22, 1889 663,877 Friedenberg Dec. 18, 1900 2,231,259 ElWell Feb. 11, 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS 25,599 Great Britain 1905 

